Kosova Daily Report #1615, 98-11-18

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From: Kosova Information Center <http://www.kosova.com/>

Kosova Information Center
KOSOVA DAILY REPORT #1615
Prishtina, 18 November 1998

CONTENTS

[01] President Rugova Receives U.S. Senator, Swedish and European Commission Officials

[02] Kosova Parliament Reaffirms Its Readiness to Work for Broadly-based Government

[03] Witness Claims Mass Graves Exist in De^an

[04] Aircraft Flying Overhead Gjakova and Unsolved Blast Cause Fear and Alarm

[05] Continued Firearm Shooting, Albanians Maltreated by Police, in Mitrovica

[06] Serbs Kill 30 Heads of Livestock in Klina on Tuesday

[07] Serb Police Arrests Doctor in Gjakova Hospital

[01] President Rugova Receives U.S. Senator, Swedish and European Commission Officials

In the meeting with Senator Inhofe, attended the meeting were also Robert Norman, Political and Economic Section's chief in the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade, and Bridget Brin, political officer, the current situation in Kosova and the prospects for a negotiated settlement were discussed.

President Rugova said the situation continued to be grave and dangerous amidst a huge presence of Serbian military and police force. A speedy deployment of OSCE ana NATO verification missions may calm the tensions and create a situation in which people would feel safe to return to their homes, and the appropriate climate and environment created to pursue a political process for a negotiated settlement.

Independence of Kosova is the best solution for the country, but also a stabilizing factor for the entire region, Ibrahim Rugova said.

Senator James Inhofe took an interest in diverse aspects of the situation in Kosova, Rugova's Office said Meanwhile, in his meeting with Swedish Secretary Hun-Britt Anderson, in which Ambassador Mats Staffanson and Ambassador Bo Kalfors and other Swedish diplomats took part, President Ibrahim Rugova spoke of the consequences of this year's Serbian offensives in Kosova, which resulted in thousands of Albanians killed, hundreds of others gone missing, and hundreds of thousands driven from their homes.

Secretary of State Gun-Britt Anderson expressed the concern of the Swedish Government over the situation in Kosova as well its readiness to support the people of Kosova in these tragic, hard times.

Today, the President of the Republic of Kosova received a delegation of the European Commission, headed by Michael Graham, Charge D'Affaires of the delegation in Belgrade, in which Th‚r‚se Sobieski, Commission official in charge of EC reconstruction programs, took part.

The European Commission's officials briefed Rugova on the humanitarian aid the Commission has secured for the Kosovar refugees and IDPs in Kosova.

Ms Sobieski spoke in detail about the European Union's program on reconstruction in Kosova as well as efforts to secure a prompt implementation of the program.

International help is needed to alleviate the humanitarian situation in Kosova, President Rugova said. The Kosova institutions will closely cooperate with this mission and all international organizations supporting the people of Kosova, he concluded.

[02] Kosova Parliament Reaffirms Its Readiness to Work for Broadly-based Government

The Parliament of the Republic, elected in the 22 March 1998 elections, committed to the constitutional norm, has reaffirmed its readiness to work for the formation of a broadly-based Government, but the U^K representative and the LBD (the United Democratic Movement), a coalition of opposition parties which did not take part in the election, have not responded to this spirit, according to the Parliament.

The U^K's and LBD's insistence for the creation of a National Assembly, in which the current legislature would be augmented without an election process, and the formation of a government body by three basic subjects alone (U^K, LBD, and LDK), as well as the insistence that the eventual Government be not responsible to the organs of the Republic of Kosova (the Parliament and the President) does not contribute to the conclusion of a principled agreement on the basis of the Constitution, the press release signed by Parliamentary Speaker Idriz Ajeti said.

The Parliament reaffirmed today its willingness to continue working for the formation of a broadly-based Government, as a mechanism for the implementation of the freedom and independence bid in Kosova.

[03] Witness Claims Mass Graves Exist in De^an

The witness, who, for security reasons, insisted that his name be not revealed, told the human rights group that the Albanians executed summarily by Serb security forces and members of paramilitary units during the summer months, were damped in the water wells in the area.

He appealed on international organizations, including the investigations of the UN war crimes tribunal, to carry out investigations in the area of De^an.

[04] Aircraft Flying Overhead Gjakova and Unsolved Blast Cause Fear and Alarm

Two Yugoslav army aircraft flew low overhead the town of Gjakova several time this morning. At around 10:00, two planes were seen flying in the skies of the town and a huge detonation that shook the town was heard soon. Most of the citizens walked out of their homes to see what was happening.

By midday, the LDK Information Commission in Gjakova failed to learn where precisely the blast occurred, or what was it actually.

[05] Continued Firearm Shooting, Albanians Maltreated by Police, in Mitrovica

For almost four hours on Monday evening, from 8 p.m. through midnight, Serb residents of Mitrovica fired in the air from diverse kinds of weapons in all the parts of the town.

Sources in Mitrovica reported today of stepped up movement of Serb forces in the town and surrounding villages since early morning hours. Several Albanians were reported maltreated by the Serb police yesterday and today morning, including Imer H. Nuhiu (27) from Melenica, and Aziz Ademi, Naim Ademi and Musa Fazliu, residents of Grabanica village.

[06] Serbs Kill 30 Heads of Livestock in Klina on Tuesday

An LDK activist told the KIC that yesterday afternoon the Serb police collected the livestock at a location called Gryka e Gllarev&s (the Gllareva Pass) and killed them with automatic guns.

The killed animals were loaded in trucks and driven away in the direction of Peja, he said.

The LDK Information Commission in Klina said Serb forces posted near the village of Gllareva sprayed with machine-gun the outlying Albanian communities last night. Part of the local population, which recently returned to Gllareva, spent the night in the nearby forests fearing a Serb crackdown.

[07] Serb Police Arrests Doctor in Gjakova Hospital

Dr. Leka, who is also head of the LDK unit in his village of residence Novosell&, was arrested in his workplace, the LDK Information Commission in the town said.

By mid-afternoon Dr. Pal Leka was reported still in Serb police custody. The reason of his arrest has not been known yet.

Another physician from Gjakova, Dr. Fehmi Vula, was held in Serb police custody from May to November. Dr. Vula was arrested and held in custody under charges of having offered medical treatment to members of the Kosova Liberation Army (U^K).

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